A wolf in foreign lands
by Minna Vipera
Summary: Arya Stark isn't the only wolfblooded Stark in history. Far from it, in fact. One lost little wolf, centuries before even the Dragons came to Westeros, would have great consequences for the outcome on The Game. Starts in 522BC, will eventually reach the normal timeline. Rated M because it's ASOIAF...
1. Chapter 1

New story, yes, I know I should probably write more on New Wolf in Town, but I've pretty much lost all inspiration there... It's not dead! It's just in a bit of a coma...

For those of you who managed to read the teaser before it was removed, I guess it took less than a week to get the first chapter up:-)

Any questions, just ask!

/MinnaVipera

* * *

The ship set out from White Harbour on the first tide. The cog was loaded to the brim with lumber from the Wolfswood, ironwood and sentinels and soldier pines were highly valued in the south. Walrus tusks and spiralling narwhal horns, hunted in the cold expanses of the Shivering Sea, were sought after amongst the artisans of Myr. A small number of weirwood saplings were also brought, as was tradition, to spread the Gods' sight of the World.

But the most important cargo onboard was currently standing on the bow and watching the scraggly mountains of the Vale pass by to her starboard side. The Princess of Winter, second daughter of the King of Winter, was headed South.

Raya Stark wasn't entirely convinced of this idea of her father's. He had been looking South for some time and had asked her to establish trade relations with the Martells of Sunspear and the Dayne of Starfall. She scoffed. It was nothing but a poor way of trying to get her fastened to a man. The Martell prince was supposedly handsome and only three namedays her senior, while the lord Dayne's younger brother, the current Sword of the Morning, was her own age of six-and-ten namedays. Her father, Cregard Stark, had undoubtedly hoped that one of them may manage to tame his wildest daughter where every would-be suitor north of the Trident had failed completely. Raya had always been happiest when atop one of the horses that made up her mother's banners and swinging the sword her favourite cousin had gifted her on her tenth nameday. She wasn't made to sit in a tower and only pop out heirs to a husband.

She would see the world before that would ever happen. She knew her duty to her kingdom meant she would be forced to marry eventually, but she'd be damned if she wasn't going to live first!

* * *

A moon later found the Princess and her ship in the middle of the Narrow Sea, well out of sight for any lookout from the Durrandon stronghold and shielded further from land by light fog in all directions. A storm had passed two nights prior and Raya had just gotten over her sea sickness enough to leave her cabin. The two handmaidens she had brought with her from Winterfell wasn't faring any better and little Serena Snow was still bedridden while her elder sister Sarra was trying to get her to eat something.

"Princess, how are you faring today?"

The captain, Medric Threefinger, was the son of a bastard cousin of the Manderlys and had grown up sailing. He had supposedly lost two fingers to a shark when he was eight. Or to a rigging mishap at age one-and-ten. Or during a pirate attack at eight-and-ten. The story changed every time she asked, so she wasn't sure how he actually lost the two fingers of his right hand, but he seemed to do pretty good without them.

"Better, thank you Captain, but I am afraid Serena may require some time on solid land soon. I certainly hope we shall be spared from any more storms."

"We are around four leagues out from Rain House, if the winds are good we should reach Sunspear within a fortnight. I'm afraid that I cannot promise anything about storms, but we should have passed the worst of them. The Stepstones should provide calmer and dryer winds, Your Grace."

"Good. I do not look forward to more storms like the last one."

At that moment the lookout suddenly dropped down from the rigging. "Captain, three ships sighted to the south east, five points to port! Moving fast, contact should be in an hour, but it's hard to determine their speed."

Captain Medric was immediately fully alert, eyes scanning the foggy horizon and cursing as he made out the foggy silhouettes of three ships with full sails. Their own cog wasn't a small vessel but she had much less sails than the approaching ships and was built for cargo rather than speed. "ALL HANDS ON DECK!" he bellowed, followed it up with a "pardon princess, but please get below deck for your own safety" before going back to shouting at his men to shift the sails and get their weapons ready.

Raya ran to the cabin she shared with her handmaidens and dug her beloved sword from the trunk at the foot of her bed while hurriedly explaining the situation to the Snows and telling them to get their own weapons out. Sarra dug out her own sword and threw three daggers to Serena before hiding another in her skirts. Raya had her poisoned hair pin out and held out two more to the sisters. "I know they are plain, but they can still kill. Manticore venom. You know what hairstyle to use. Do not let anyone take them from you. Last resort only." The three had figured out a way to put their hair up while also not making the pins obvious a year earlier, and Raya kept three poisoned hair pins on her at all times the three left the safety of Winterfell.

Almost an hour later the captain came down to inform them that the three ships were almost upon them and would they please barricade their cabin door as best as they can, before he ran back up to the deck. The girls did the best they could and soon their three trunks were stacked up to the door.

Shortly thereafter all hell broke loose.

* * *

The bearing to the pirate ships is marked in points. One point is 1/32 of 360 degrees and is how compasses are commonly marked (NNNW level of accuracy, if that helps). This goes back to at least the old Traverse Board, a way of using dead reckoning to figure out the average course during a four-hour watch on a ship.

Ages:

Raya: 16

Sarra: 15

Serena: 10


	2. Chapter 2

Captain Medric cursed again as the three ships neared enough for him to identify them as Valyrian pirates. The slave trading bastards were nothing but an affront to the Gods, no man has the right to own another, it was against everything the Gods stood for. He would do everything in his power to keep the Princess and her ladies safe. Even if it cost him his life.

"Edric! Get us away from them as fast as possible, does everyone have their weapons ready?"

"Aye captain, doin' our best but there's a slight issue with the port brace, was thinking of sending Little Will up there to fix it, but it ain't that urgent."

Medric looked up and quickly identified the problem. The port side brace had somehow gotten wrapped around the end of the yard in the flurry of getting away. It would wear the rope quicker than normal, but it wouldn't impact their manoeuvrability right now. "Good call. We'll fix it when we finish those bastards. Get Little Will up there anyways with a crossbow, he has a good eye. Dev and Col, you will guard the cabins. Protect the princess with all you've got."

Two burly sailors, each carrying an axe, nodded and made their way down. The pirates were almost upon them by now, two yellow dragons facing each other on their sails. Fucking Dragons. Bloody fucking Dragons

The first grappling hook bounced off the side of the ship. The second and third stuck but were quickly cut loose by the nearest sailor. The fourth, fifth and sixth were accompanied by a wave of arrows and before anyone got close enough to dislodge them the pirates were onboard. What followed was a mess of swords, axes and blood, and suddenly there was a blade sticking out of his chest.

Fucking Dragons.


	3. Chapter 3

Some time later the fighting finally stopped, but the girls were far from relaxed. They didn't know who had won and they had heard fighting in the corridor outside their cabin. The lack of reassurance from the two men posted there didn't raise their spirits.

Suddenly there was heavy knocking on their door and a male voice spoke in what sounded like Valyrian. " _Obūljaria kesā. Aōha lōgor iksis īlvon. Tepgon īlva aōha egrossa iā ao morghūljagon_." The girls looked at each other in confusion. Raya had only learnt a few phrases in Valyrian, things like "Greetings and welcome to the North", in other words only useless pleasantries. She only recognised _kesā_ – you will – and _lōgor_ – ship –which wasn't enough to understand what the man on the other side of the door actually wanted. At least she knew how to ask if the other spoke the common tongue.

"Quptenkos, umm what was it again… Ydras-something… Oh yes, _Quptenkos Ēngoso ȳdrassis_?"

The voice outside answered in broken words "Give up, ship ours. Give swords or dead." If faced with the same demand anywhere in Westeros they would've fought to their last breath, but they knew that in the middle of the Narrow Sea there was nowhere for them to run and the three of them had no chance against three ships' worth of pirates. Giving in to their demands had a higher chance of survival.

Raya motioned for the other girls to hand over their weapons, but keep the hair pins. The blades were handed through a crack in the door and the foreign man ordered them to unblock the door. Again, compliance made it more likely to survive so soon the trunks were removed and the door was opened by a tall silver-blonde man. He eyed the three of them and seemed to come to a decision before turning and calling for four other men, two of whom started going through their things and the remaining two and the first man took one girl each by the arms and dragged them up on deck.

Serena, still pale from sea sickness, became if possible even paler when they reached the deck and the pirate who restrained her seemed torn on whether he should keep away from her or not. Raya had seen her father deliver justice to many men, but even she was fully unprepared for the carnage now presented to them. There was blood everywhere and the girls could make out many faces of sailors they had been joking with for the last moon. The four surviving crewmembers were tied together by the mast, but at least three of them had injuries that may still deliver them to the gods. The fourth was unconscious but the steady rise and fall of his chest and the lack of any growing blood stains hopefully meant he was only knocked out.

Captain Medric lay by the door to the cabins, a sword still lodged in his chest. Little Will was crumpled in a heap by the mast, an arrow piercing his shoulder. It looked like he had died from a fall.

The blonde man tightened his grip on Raya and led the girls to another man with similar looks. " _Lēkia, konīr ābri ilza_." The elder-looking man replied with yet more Valyrian " _Syz. Se lōgra Sothyros aerēbilzi tolī ābri jarlzi_." He took Sarra by the jaw and twisted her head towards the light " _Gevie. Jelmōñe pendan_."

He motioned for one of the pirates still on their ship who disappeared for a minute and then came back and threw a leather bag to the one Raya assumed was in charge. His cruel smile when he put the leather shackles around their necks sent chills down her spine.

" _Va jeva glaesoti arlie jiōran_."

* * *

Pardon my Valyrian. I used an English-Valyrian translator and then used the to try and get the grammar somewhat decent. If you have any corrections and/or suggestions, tell me! I need help, this gave me a headache T^T

Next chapter won't actually have Valyrian written out I swear… Hopefully.

Approximate translations:

 _You will surrender. Your ship is ours. Give us your blades or you die_

 _Do you speak the common tongue_

 _Brother, there are women_

 _Good, the ships to Sothyros needs more women._

 _Beautiful. Northern I think_

 _Welcome to your new life_


	4. Chapter 4

Trigger warning for mentioning sexual abuse of minors and abuse in general.

Translations are at the end. I'm sorry most dialogue is in Valyrian, more common tongue coming in the next chapter!

* * *

The pirates and their loot set their course southwards. The girls had been relocated to a small space in one of the slave galleys, shared with five more girls, all collared and chained to the walls. Only two of them were westerosi, Stormland girls from the Isle of Tarth, taken during a raid there three days prior. Their village had been put to the torch and the elders killed while the young men and girls were taken as slaves. Mellinna and Nyra had been singled out for their looks while the others from the village were put among the larger groups of slaves chained closely together just below deck.

The third girl was dark skinned and curly-haired and didn't speak a word of either Valyrian or the common tongue, but who introduced herself by pointing and saying "Zhona". If Raya was to guess she would peg the girl a Summer Islander, around six-and-ten namedays.

The last two spoke Valyrian and a little of the Common Tongue so they managed to introduce themselves to each other in a jumble of broken Valyrian and Common. Erleah and Minila were both born from Pentoshi pleasure slaves and were sold to the Valyrian fleet heading for Sothyros shortly after they flowered. Erleah was three-and-ten, Minila four-and-ten. Both had been given to men from a young age and both had the marks to show it. The black tears on their cheeks stood out against otherwise pale skin, apparently something their former mistress' Volantene husband had thought of.

The small area lacked windows and it was hard to keep track of days and nights. The slavers came with food at random times which only served to confuse the eight further. It became a game to try to figure out the time and day from how much activity they could hear from deck, but even that didn't seem to be consistent and varied more based on the winds than the time of day. On three occasions one or two of the men came and dragged Minila and Erleah with them out for some time. When they were returned it was always with blank eyes, ruffled shifts and visible bruises and they'd crawl to a corner and curl up against each other until the next meal was brought.

By their best guess it wasn't until a fortnight after Raya, Sarra and Serena had been taken that something happened. The noise increased by tenfold and vioises they didn't recognize joined the ones they had come to know. All eight girls were chained together by their collars and cuffs around their feet and brought up on deck, the sudden brightness blinding eyes accustomed to the dim belly of the ship. When they finally stopped blinking and were able to see, they were met by ships. Everywhere in front of them were ships, some larger even than the galley they were on and some smaller. The elder blonde man she assumed was the captain was talking to an equally blond man, probably from another ship, ' _Gods, does every single man here look like that?_ ' and gesturing to them and the cog the northern girls had first come with. The bloodstains were still visible here and there but no bodies were in sight. They had probably been thrown over board as soon as possible.

" _Urnē. Riñi kostōbi se gevivesse issi. Sȳrī vēzor gaomilzi._ _L_ _ō_ _gor sindīlā._ " The new man walked a slow lap around them, carefully inspecting every part of them, even going as far as grabbing Erleah between her legs and pushing a finger inside her. She stood stoically, her eyes blank and showing nothing, as he continued his inspection. He forced Zhona's and Raya's mouths open to look at their teeth before turning back to "their" captain.

" _Issa, pōnta sindīli. Āeksia lantēpsa se gēlion jēnqa?"_

 _"_ _Dōre, Āeksia Izula lantēpsa se gēlion hāre"._

 _"_ _Āeksia lanta lantēpsa se gēlion bȳre."_

Both men nodded and silver and gold coins changed hands, as did the chains connecting the girls, and they were led over a thin plank to the ship next to theirs. The men on the cog also changed for ones who jumped from their new ship. Raya couldn't help but be glad at some level that the reminder of the north still would come with them.

They were brought down below deck, but this time they were put in a larger area with other chained slaves and the chain was attached to a shackle in the wall. They were just below the upper deck and the low ceiling forced them to spend their time crouched or laying down if there was space. Both feet and necks were still chained so it was uncomfortable and cramped, but they made do. At least it was easier to keep track of night and day through the occasional crack in the deck above.

Another sennight passed before the next notable event. Shouting and screaming seemed to come from all directions at once, from near and afar. Raya thought she heard the voice of the man who bought them, but it cut off so fast she couldn't be sure.

Minute by minute the screams subsided leaving every slave below deck afraid for their life and unwilling to say a single thing. They waited for what seemed like hours before a small group of men came down, their half naked bodies streaked with blood and not a single silver-blonde hair on their heads, and they started striking the chains from the walls, breaking cuffs and collars where they could.

" _Dohaerirossa_ _iksāt daor._ _Dohaerirossa arlī dōrī_ _kesāt._ "

* * *

Translations. I solemnly swear I will NOT have any Valyrian in the next chapter! Bloody headache… Corrections are appreciated.

 _Look. These girls are strong and beautiful. They will do well south. You can buy the ship [_ _too]._

 _Yes, I will buy them. Twenty gold and eight silvers?_

 _No, Twenty four gold and three silvers_

 _Twenty two gold and six silvers._

 _You are not slaves. You will never be slaves again_

Names and ages

Raya Stark: 16

Sarra Snow: 15

Serena Snow: 10

Mellinna: 12

Nyra: 9

Zhona: 16

Erleah: 13

Minila: 14


	5. Chapter 5

Confusion and chaos reigned for an entire day as the former slaves found themselves without masters and direction. Some were trying to find friends and family who had been confined to other ships while others simply tried to find someone who spoke the same language and could explain what was going on. At the same time a hierarchy was slowly growing and a number of sailors from different ships had gathered to decide on a common direction. Continuing south and settling in Sothyros was considered, but discarded as the Dragonlords would likely expect such a move, as was following the Rhoynar example of going west to the Sunset Kingdoms, before the representative of a small group of priestesses from the nomad tribes of the Jogos Nhai came forward with a prophesy about a bay to the north, shielded both from above and around by nature itself. The lagoon supposedly sat at the border of two seas and would see the Titan's children protected for a millennium or more.

The decision was made to steer the entire fleet north in search for the prophesised lagoon and orders were distributed throughout the ships. Since most of the slaves brought were born and bred in captivity few wished to return "home" and so only four ships in total broke off to transport those unwilling to follow the prophecy north. The remaining 187 ships set their sails, carrying around 10 000 slaves with them, and would keep their course, first north-west to put some distance between themselves and Valyria, and then due north, passing the Stepstones and continuing all the way through the Narrow Sea before veering to the east to better survey the essosi coast.

On the eight-and-twentieth day after the slave mutiny, the leading ships reached the north-western tip of Essos, a fog-laden and rocky part of the coast, covered in black spruce and soldier pines. It was another half day before a lookout on one of the ships spotted a narrow opening, no more than four or five ship widths wide and crowned with a massive granite arch. Three ships, crewed with some of the best sailors, were sent through the opening and returned with reports of a lagoon, surrounded on all sides by foggy mountains. The area was largely comprised of small to medium islands of stone and sand in the middle and mudflats along the southern part of the lagoon.

The nomad priestesses were called for and confirmed that the lagoon seemed to match the safe haven described in the prophesy, and the entire fleet then slowly made their way into the shielded area.

* * *

Sorry its short, I'm in the final stages of writing my bachelor's thesis in Nautical Science so I've been a bit short on time… And I kinda got sidetracked while calculating sailing distances and the ships' speed during various legs of the trip, comparing it to the expected speeds of medieval vessel types, estimating the current of the Narrow sea (ended up as 0.6 kn to the north, based on the Norwegian current) and trying to estimate the number of slaves ("a huge fleet of slave ships" doesn't tell you a lot…). My first assumed numbers were 287 ships and 30 000 slaves, based on the Atlantic slave trade and then downsized by some, it was then reduced to the 187 ships and 10000 slaves because I highly doubt an early Braavos without an easy supply of fresh water was capable of supporting 30 000 people. I also found a nice map of "present-day" Braavos and population estimates of 750-900 000 inhabitants in the islands.

Now I just have to figure out how to incorporate the iron mines of the Iron Bank

/Minna

Oh yeah, I'm not sure how relevant it is, but the slave who got the last word in the last chapter is named Quarro.


	6. Chapter 6

Qoren I

Qoren Nymeros Martell was starting to get impatient. Every morning during the last moon he had taken his favourite sand steed from his rooms in the Tower of the Sun, the seat of his mother Obara Nymeros Martell, down to the harbour to inquire about whether the northern envoy had arrived yet. A few times he had been accompanied by Meria, but the little princess was unable to stay still for long periods so those times ended in either him sending her back to the palace early with a guard or promising her a proper desert race afterwards.

According to the raven exchange with Winterfell the princess and her ship should have arrived over a fortnight prior, just after the latest turn of the moon, and there hadn't been any reports about severe storms nor any demands from either the stags or the falcons. The raven sent to Starfall claimed the princess hadn't arrived there either, and so the Martells were starting to wonder if anything had happened. There had been reports of increased sightings of Valyrian ships south-east of the Stepstones, but except for the occasional dragon, likely heading to that small rock they'd heard the Valyrians had taken some interest in in Blackwater Bay, no actual dragons had been seen flying over the Narrow Sea for the last few moons.

They'd wait another sennight and then send out search patrols along the coast to search for wrecks or lost northerners.

It'd be a pity if the ship and the princess were completely lost, wood was a commodity in Dorne and a good trading relationship with the forested North would only benefit them in the long run. And the unmarried princess was supposed to be very beautiful, Qoren could freely admit he wouldn't mind becoming better acquainted with the woman if that was true. Nymmie had always teased him for his love of all things beautiful.

* * *

Sorry it's so short (again) and that the A/N is almost the same length as the chapter itself, I'll try to get another chapter out soon (no promises of when, that's probably safest for me…). No Raya in this one, just thought I'd write something about what happens in the south, and it happens around the same time as the mutiny of the slave convoy. And yes, the Dornish somehow didn't manage to intercept the 100+ ships large convoy on its way north. After Nymeria's burning of the ten thousand ships they didn't have the greatest fleet, and this is only set around 150 years after Nymeria's arrival.

Qoren is the son of the ruling princess of Dorne, Obara Nymeros Martell, and the great-great-great-great grandchild of Nymeria and Mors Martell. Meria is his 10-year old little sister and "Nymmie" is Nymeria, his cousin and the lady of Starfall through her marriage to lord Andrey Dayne, elder brother to Vorian Dayne, the current Sword of the Morning.

I may or may not have created a family tree for Raya reaching back some 200 years when I got bored. And for most noble Westerosi characters mentioned in this story… It includes some canon characters like the Horned Lord (king-beyond-the-wall) and I'll try to build it downwards all the way to the canon family trees since I intend for the story to reach all the way to canon. The annoying thing is not knowing exact birth and death dates for all characters but that can be improvised :-)


End file.
